By permission of the artist, The Cyber Art Show is pleased to feature the first of two 12-piece Exhibitions of works by American landscape artist Michele Combs (born 1954 in Coronado, California).

 

Michele was raised and still lives in the Twin cities of Minneapolis-Saint Paul. She went to the University of Minnesota and has a B.S. in Occupational Therapy. Art was something she was always drawn to but didn’t know it was a vocation to pursue. Today she calls herself an artist and a painter, but is not really sure when it was achieved. She feels evolving into an artist was a learning, growing, and maturing process.

 

Michele’s training included traditional realism instruction at the Minnesota River School of Fine Art and led to workshops with talented master painting instructors.

 

Michele realizes, in hindsight, that though her family tree did not consist of professional studio artists, it did contain extremely creative individuals with strong appreciations for a variety of art forms. Her Norwegian grandmother was an amazing cook and highly-skilled in a variety of textile arts including: sewing, quilting, and yarn arts. Her Greek grandfather was an enthusiastic, amateur musician and a professional barber. Michele’s mother is a keen decorator, antique collector, and has a high appreciation for the arts in general. Her Irish father worked in the entertainment business and had a soft spot for Latin music.

 

As well as being surrounded by the interests of the adults in her life, arts and craft projects attracted her. By the time she reached high school, she decided to register for an art class. Unfortunately, it was a frustrating and she shut the book on ‘the arts.’

 

Michele enjoyed her time as an Occupational Therapist, a career in which arts and craft are utilized as a therapeutic tool. Throughout her adult life art-related ventures were hobbies. She was married, had two young children, and a job - life was full. Then one day she signed up for a painting class and now she is a lifelong student. Michele is eternally grateful for finding her passion, though it came a bit later then she’d hoped. Painting and teaching painting is now her full-time occupation, and she enjoys it thoroughly.

 

Michele's paintings can be found in private and corporate collections. Her studio is located in

The Northrup King Building #391, in Minneapolis.